Meerut blue drum case: Court awards death penalty to Muskan, Sahil

Court awards capital punishment to wife and her lover, two weeks after convicting them in the case that shocked the country

The Meerut district court on Wednesday sentenced Muskan Rastogi and her lover Sahil Shukla to death for the murder of her husband, former Merchant Navy officer Saurabh Rajput, in the "blue drum" case. 

The court granted the death sentence to both of them.

The sentence comes two weeks after the verdict on guilt. On September 30, the Meerut district court held both guilty, ending a trial that ran for 13 months and 126 hearings. District Judge Arvind Mishra observed at the time that such an act had "no place in a civilised society."

How the crime unfolded

According to the prosecution, the 29-year-old Rajput was drugged and stabbed to death by Muskan and Sahil at his Meerut home in March 2025. His body was then dismembered and hidden in a blue plastic drum filled with cement and sand. The couple then fled to Himachal Pradesh, and Muskan later told her family about the killing, which led police to register a case.

Police cut open the sealed drum and found Rajput's remains, then arrested both accused. The case had spread across the country because of the gruesome nature of the crime.

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What the prosecution relied on

The prosecution used circumstantial, forensic and technical evidence. It included testimony from witnesses linked to the purchase of the drum, cement and sand, along with call-detail records and mobile tower locations.

The prosecution examined 22 witnesses, including people connected to the purchase of the drum, cement, knife and utensils allegedly used in the crime.

The accused

Muskan and Rajput married in 2016 against his family's wishes and had a six-year-old daughter. She and Sahil had known each other since school. Police alleged the plan was long in the making. Investigators said Muskan had allegedly been planning the murder since November 2023.

The accused's circumstances changed during the trial. Muskan gave birth to a baby girl in custody. Before the sentence, legal experts had said she was unlikely to receive the death penalty because of this.

The court's order ruled otherwise.

A death sentence from a trial court does not take effect immediately.

In India it must be confirmed by the High Court, and the accused can appeal to the High Court and then the Supreme Court, so the legal process is far from over.

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